ALBANY -- While Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said it would be "necessary" for public employees to endure a wage freeze in the coming fiscal year, their current contract means more than 50,000 state workers are on track for increases in pay later this year.

While the labor pact expires April 1, a state law known as the Triborough Amendment demands the pre-negotiated increases for time on the job -- which require acceptable performance reviews -- will be paid according to the existing agreement. No across-the-board raises are scheduled.

Cuomo's proposed budget books $450 million in work force savings to help close a $10 billion deficit. As a "last resort," the governor said, the savings would have to be made through the layoffs of up to 9,800 public workers.

But the budget also includes roughly $140 million to pay the scheduled increases, said Jeffrey Gordon, a Division of the Budget spokesman.

The pay hikes fall into two categories: step increases, awarded annually over seven years between the "hiring rate" and the "job rate," and longevity pay for workers staying at the top "job rate" for five and 10 years.

Gordon said 22,700 PEF members and 27,300 CSEA members are on track for step increases this year. Depending upon job grade, increases range from $744 to over $3,600 per year.

Gordon said 18,039 CSEA members and 16,600 PEF members are projected to receive longevity bonuses of $1,250 or $2,500. Both types of payments take effect in April, but will show up in paychecks several weeks later due to a lag.

The embedded increases, coupled with the Triborough extension, are yet another sign of how difficult it is for the executive to rein in public employee spending.

"From the beginning, when the governor started talking about a pay freeze, it was more symbolic than anything," said E. J. McMahon, director of the conservative Empire Center for New York State Policy, an Albany-based think tank. "It's nothing new, and unless he modifies Triborough, it's not a hard freeze."

McMahon described Triborough as a "third rail" in New York politics.

Cuomo could avoid the issue if a new contract can be settled. The governor has six weeks to reach an agreement, which must be approved by CSEA's 68,000 members in PEF's 56,000.

Stephen Madarasz, a CSEA spokesman, said Monday that sort of swift approval "looks less and less likely with each passing day."

In 2007, former Gov. Eliot Spitzer negotiated the current labor contracts when the state's coffers were flush. He began bargaining sessions on April 17 of that year -- after the passage of the 2007-2008 budget -- and it took roughly six months to reach a tentative agreement. In 1999, formal negotiations between the unions and Gov. George Pataki didn't begin until April 20 and lasted until March of the following year.

"Preliminary discussions are ongoing," said Cuomo's spokesman Josh Vlasto. "We look forward to working with our union partners in a collaborative and productive way."

Neither Cuomo nor his spokesmen have expressed his position on the Triborough Amendment. Senior adviser Larry Schwartz said last month that the Cuomo administration may seek a temporary suspension to parts of the Triborough Amendment as part of its efforts to relieve mandates on school districts and local governments.

It's unclear if any action will be taken at the state level -- something that would require action by the state Legislature.

A spokeswoman for Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, declined to say his position on changes to Triborough, noting no proposal is on the table.

Scott Reif, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Long Island, said that "given the economic realities we face, everything must be on the table and part of the discussions on the budget."

Labor officials and their allies described the Triborough statute as an essential element of fair bargaining. CSEA's Madarasz said it "creates a level playing field that forces labor and management to negotiate in good faith."

"The Triborough Amendment benefits both sides of the table," said Sen. Diane Savino, a Staten Island Democrat and former labor leader. "No mayor, governor or supervisor wants to negotiate when there's a (budget) surplus."